Endless
Endless is an epic written by the Kanohi Force's President, Ghidora, revolving around the apocalypse of BZ-Nui and the destruction of the site. Prologue It had been three years since the portal closed. In that time span, there had been a civil war, a corruption of several members, and a near-leveling of the Kanohi Force tower. With that, the staff had removed several of the force's rights, and things were near collapse once again. In the last month, the Tower had been reconstructed, but this time out on the mountains. Ghidora had devised a sort of safehouse underneath, which he then began to cram with duplicates of stuff they already had. The internal structure of the building had begun to decay, and it was a question if the tower would even last a year. With Shadow and IcarusBen designing a blueprint for a new tower, and Ghidora making numerous edits, it seemed the force would be back together in a week. Hah. Ahaha. Clearly, we had no idea what we were thinking. This next series of chapters will try to explain what really happened to the Kanohi Force, despite the assurance of the contrary by the staff. Any and all sections here are to be taken as absolute facts, although they are in the perspective of whoever was witnessing them, edited to a third-person view. We will hope to finally reveal to the public what actually happened to BZ-Metru, the appearance of the World-Fighter, and the destruction of a universe. ~Dallior. Chapter One IcarusBen. Known throughout the entire force as head of the development of BZP's armed forces. He was paid in seven figures for his work, although he spent most his time underground developing technology. Despite his incredible investment, most of the money went to acquiring parts and materials, and keeping the press happy. At the moment, however, he was moving as quietly as he could through a darkened hallway, the faintest sound freezing him in his tracks. And then - a door swung open from the side, and a tall, fearsome shadow fell over the newfound light. It didn't last long, for it disappeared in a puff, making the shadow look like a heat wave; warping around the light with a watery texture. IcarusBen rolled and began to run, beads of sweat forming under his Portal 2 Wheatley helmet. He had engineered it to follow eye movement and make the electronic eye face wherever they pointed. It also contained instant communication to his ship, the BZS Daedalus, and his private ship, the BZS Valykire. Soft, questioning whispers darted around his head, as if the being chasing him was toying with his mind. The dark hallways seemed to never end, but it must. It had to. There was no infinite... With a thud, the escaping shipmaster slammed into the far door. Groaning, he turned to make sure the being wasn't following. His night vision detected not even a trace of shadow, so he turned and opened the door. ----- Aerixx rested his legs in the medical room of the Kanohi Force Tower, which had been moved back to the mountainside and the basement converted to a storehouse/museum. The grand opening was the next day, and stress had been high for the group. Aerixx, however, was completely chill during it all, his only duty so far being to get rid of anyone who was an annoyance and keep them from vandalizing the outer walls, which he performed with remarkable success. The rest of the Leedurship was present in the room. Pohatu, the Leedur of stone, an exact duplicate of the set itself, was seated by a table, sitting upright, writing out a report of IcarusBen's progress. The 1st Shadow, a short black-and-dark green augmented Av-Matoran and the oldest of the Leedurz, sat with a nervous face in a backwards wooden chair, resting his elbows as he thought of how Ghidora would react. Jakura Nuva, the Leedur of canon, the second-tallest of the group and the best friend of the suited psycho, was relaxing in a hospital bed. Not due to injuries, despite his death rate, but simply relaxing, waiting for Ghidora to lash out about Ben's progress. Dallior, a Matoran of Fire with a mostly black colour scheme and the shortest in height of them all, stood by the second bed, nervously tending to the occupant, trying to stop his shaking. Arzaki was the Leedur of fire, a dual-wielding combat master with a Kualsi, polishing his mask with a soft sponge from one of the surgical drawers impatiently. As for Ghidora himself, he was the tallest Leedur, towering above the others with an incredibly thin frame and manic manner. Seen as the symbolic power of the Kanohi Force, he was the unspoken master of them all, and most of his life involved the Kanohi Force almost entirely. His elegant appearance and ghastly face was disrupted by a crinkled brow and a constant whisper of a groan as he paced up and down the room with two fingers pressing in between his eyebrows. The shuddering figure on the bed awoke suddenly, looking around before a rigid familiarity with the place set in. "Seven times, Ben. SEVEN TIMES!!" The titan roared, holding himself back from springing onto the bed and throttling the only human member of the force. "We have done this hallway routine seven times, and every single time you walk into the door, I jump you, and you pass out! Are you really sure you're capable of holding the position as head guard for the tower's unveiling while the staff walk right by you??" "Well maybe if you didn't have two million teeth and didn't scream at the top of your lungs I would have a better chance!" Icarus rubbed his wrists nervously, still shaking slightly. "Well, you failed. If you really want a job, we can assign you to parking lot manager. You've got two hours to think about it and let us know. And leave this room as soon as you are able; we have more testing to do." The core-wearer simply scowled at the taller being, looking around at the rest of the Leedurship for some kind of a comment. But there was none, only a silent, questioning glance or a turned back. Eventually, he got up, still trembling, trying to ignore Dallior's reassuring words of kindness as he led him to the door. "You know," Aerixx began in his cool, uncaring manner as soon as the door closed, choosing to be the one to give Ghidora reproach before anyone else could. "That was kinda salty towards Ben there. I get this is a big deal 'n all, but you don't need to go so brutal on the kid. I mean, it's a kid's group. We don't want to appear..." The glaring and tiring eyes of the suited psycho looked down upon the lounging figure. "Too caustic, lest the staff shut down the grand opening itself." Ghidora sighed deeply. "It's not that which I'm worried about. It's having the kid there at all. Today he has a business meeting with Black Six, and he's not gonna like what he has to say." ----- After taking several homeopathics and some therapy, IcarusBen ascended the stairs of the staff's tower with a bundle of papers under his arm. "Stupid Ghidora... Usually he accompanies me, since he's so much better at legal stuff..." He grumbled under his breath as the futuristic elevator took him to the head moderator's office. Inside, an elegant crimson carpet on a reddish brown wood floor led up to a massive desk which seemed more akin to a courtroom than an office. Behind the layers of business matters and hate mail sat Black Six, one of the only humans in BZ-Metru. He quickly put a separate sheet of figures in a side drawer and cleared some space so he could clearly see his manufacturer. "Hello Ben. Have a seat, won't you?" IcarusBen was so used to this routine it didn't even impress him any more. A chair rose from the floor, he stepped around it, and took his seat. "This is unusual, sir. You requested me at the beginning of the month instead of during the middle. Has something occurred?" The mod chuckled quietly at how unbusiness-like Icarus was without his superior there. "Well, Mr. IcarusBen, we have had some developments come to fruition that have rather neatly reproduced your particular services in a reasonable and cost-effective manner to suit BZPower as a whole. In the future, perhaps we will be able to fully appreciate how far technology has brought-" "Which means?" IcarusBen said with a nervous glare. He didn't like where this was going. "It means we've dispensed with your services and have begun manufacture of our own fleet, minus the expensive payments to you." Black Six grinned slightly. "In the meantime, your end-of-the-month check will still arrive on schedule, and after that all business terms will cease. Oh, and we will require the immediate handing over of your entire fleet, minus the Valykire and Daedalus, in prevention of an uprising." Icarus stammered for a moment before bringing his fist down on the end of the desk. "Y-You can't do this to me! With all that I've done! With how much I've helped you!" Black Six's face darkened instantly. "We do what we please. If that doesn't please you, we can discuss alternate terms..." He slowly reached for the hammer under his desk, making a slight noise as he did so, revealing his actions to Ben. Luckily he didn't have to pull it out, for soon after a distressed and sickened IcarusBen was pacing into the elevator and back to the streets below. ----- A long walk through the happy streets told the world how miserable he was feeling right then. Sadness washed over him like a strong breeze. All his entire company operations were about to be shut down, and he'd only keep his two main ships. Look on the bright side. At least I can keep the other two... But it's not fair! It's just- Some screams broke his odd silence. He glanced around to see people running towards him. Nervous, he pulled out a futuristic-looking pistol from his jacket pocket, and the last thing he remembered was seeing The Editor a ways off. A dial tone. Pitch blackness. Some odd compiled code he only saw a handful of. And then, the light... He woke up on the rusted lawn chair set up by the pool on the top of the Kanohi Force tower. The Leedurz were huddled around, discussing in severe tones, about a tragedy that had occured, speaking of filing paperwork for death-related repossessing of property and bypassing the aforementioned papers. After a while Dallior noticed him, and brought Ghidora's attention to it. "Oh, you're awake finally. You just respawned about two minutes ago. No need trying to explain, I saw the whole thing." "What happened?" Ben sat up, using his momentum to stand. "Did I die?" "Yeah." Jakura shrugged. "Odd text, black nothing... I see it a lot." "Irrelevent." Shadow butted in. "Ghidora, I'm bringing the rest of the force in for a briefing. You tell them what you saw. In Hangdown. With Dane." With a slight glare to the Av-Matoran and a sweeping bow to the Leedurship, the nimble wisp of a madman slid downstairs. Chapter Two Dallior shook The Editor softly. "Wake up, please... This is important..." The latter slowly sat up on his bed and rubbed his eyes, before glaring suspiciously at the Leedur. "Now hey, what are you doing in my room? more so, waking me while I'm trying to nap?" "Look, it's an emergency." Dallior huffed out, trying to hide his excitement. "Come on, the rest of the force is waiting for you!" ----- The Editor found himself on a bench placed near the podium in the meeting room for the whole force. Every member of the Kanohi Force was there, all eyeing him, Dane, and IcarusBen, who sat next to him on either side. The room was more fit for a government meeting than a disgruntled club, but they used it nonetheless. Behind the stand was a large symbol of the Kanohi Flashbaki, two flags representing Bionicle and BZPower, and an odd chair in the corner. The tallest person there had walked from the back of the room with a pile of papers under his arm as he tried to attach a clip-on microphone to his suit, up to the podium itself. Dallior tried to get people to quiet down, but it was unnecessary, for the pale, dead face of Ghidora held everyone silent. "What you are about to see and hear," He began, glancing back and forth at the assembled crowd, and especially to the seven chairs in the far back assigned to the Leedurship, "Will be public knowledge in less than 24 hours due to circumstances beyond our control, but you get the honour of being the first to know." A slight grumble was heard from Dane. "This," the lights dimmed suddenly as a slide projector turned on in the back, displaying a massive set of gears, rods, and security equipment. "Is Hangdown. Aside from the H.A.P.O.R.I. system, this is the most powerful machine in BZ-Nui ever to exist. With it, it can control any robotic material in any dimension that has any connection to BZ-Nui. It can also stop the functions of every BZPower member, save a few, essentially trapping them in time." Ghidora turned towards the wall while saying this, and then he turned back to the force as he finished. "And I own it." Shadow's face was as white as snow for a second before his temper flared up. "Do you mean you've had a device this whole time to control all of us?!" Ghidora ignored him and continued. "With this machine, Dane and I were able to track down a much more corrupt, alternate dimension of BZPower, only to find the whole thing had gone to ruin, and the only machine still functioning was a Vahki unit. We-" "Answer the question!" Voices began roaring from the stands, as several members insisted on the truth of the matter, IcarusBen in particular. Jakura stood up in defense, and held his hand out to get their attention. "I did not say what he hid was not wrong, but I know him well enough that he'll tell us, in his own way." "...We reprogrammed this unit," Ghidora continued, with a weary, frustrated expression. "to undermine what had happened and stop whatever was going on. Turns out the entire thing was a dying dimension, aided in its downfall by our dear friend here." He pointed his metal-plated arm towards The Editor, who began fidgeting in his seat and turning deathly pale. "The Alternate-Dimension Editor, although for the sake of time I will refer to him as A-E. He found a fractured Spiegel Stone, and used it to begin destroying the universe and give him the powers of the dimension itself." He gave a sad chuckle. "However, alternate Me had already thought of the idea and had begun to do it... On Himself. He attached himself into the universe's plain of existence, which means it wouldn't die until he did. And since the whole place kinda went to Karzahni... I got to watch myself and a fraction of you die, horribly." "On to the point," he said abruptly, shuffling his stack of papers he wasn't actually reading off of after a long and worrying silence. "That Vahki Dane hacked into made it out alive through the Spiegel Stone, which... Also... Let one of the most powerful beings ever into BZ-Nui." The Force murmured back and forth, silent questions to Ghidora seemingly being spoken through their eyes. "Of course, the staff has no clue of any of this, but I'm sure they'll find out within the hour. If you're wondering about whether or not we have to combat this threat, the answer is - most obviously - yes. We'll need to move quickly, of course, in order.. To..." He trailed off as he watched the seven reserved chairs, the one containing the Gukko Lord on the end losing its owner after he slammed his fists into the arm rests, jumped up, and angrily slapped his chair into the next row. "That's it. I quit the force. I can't take your unrelenting stupidity and these ridiculous shenanigans. Good bye." The Force broke into cries of 'don't go!' and 'please don't leave!', while others still whispered in loud voices and the Leedurz looked at each other in shock. "Shut up!" Aerixx roared as he stormed out the emergency exit, leaving Dallior to quickly deactivate the alarm. Ghidora rubbed his forehead slowly, and again rearranged his papers before folding them up and walking down the isle, only to freeze in one place with a look of panic on his face. "Quiet!" He snapped. "Listen! Now!" The noise died down almost entirely. Some of the members and Leedurz began to hear a soft, living sound in the far, far distance. It was a series of screams. Like a swarm of insects, the entirety of the organization poured out the door to find out what it was that was causing the screams. Instantly the silver form of Aerixx hoisting himself up onto a rooftop was seen, at the top of a large office complex short enough to provide even the near-sighted with a very good view of the whole thing. It had the decay of about ten years of rain and snow from past seasons and shenanigans, as did most of the buildings in the city. It was impossible to ignore. He was impossible to ignore. Floating in the same three-quarter sphere was Alternate Editor, standing directly in front of the pineapple-loving Gukko lord. However, there was a slight difference in his appearance, and that being he was practically oozing shadow from every spot on his body. His eyes glowed with raw power, his whole appearance spoke of pure force. The former Leedur was gripping his electric buzzsaw whip, standing in a slightly defensive pose before he charged, a silent roar coming from his mouth. It all happened so fast. As he tore through the air, eating up the yards in between him and the villain, it seemed like time decided to slow down and make the scene appropriate for a final goodbye. Sweat rolled off his face as he brought the whip in to remove A-E's intestines, imagining - only dreaming - of what would occur if he failed. And he was destined to, for the whip shattered to bits against A-E's body, as he felt a surge flow through him and his body freeze in place inches from the figure. The fragments washed over the glowing Noble Miru, a glimpse of what was underneath seen already by those with Akakus and a very good view for Aerixx. The villain's body was bruised, cut, bashed, beaten, devastated, all very recent wounds. His chest was heaving, his eyes staring, his whole figure underneath speaking of a very vicious and brutal battle. They outstanding view didn't last very long, however, for the much more riveting and attention-drawing scene of some odd, needle-like object entering Aerixx's chest and what followed demanded full focus. The object was a small, fractional taste of A-E's power. As it seeped into his body, it pierced into every vein, every nerve, in every bone, and began to expand in the most painful way possible. Aerixx forced his head round as he felt his body slowly being torn to shreds. There was the Kanohi Force, but more specifically, the Leedurship, who had stood by him and him by them for almost the entire time he lived in BZ-Nui. He closed his eyes as blood filled his vision. This, is for you... It may as well have been spoken. The next second, there was no more Aerixx, as his entire body exploded into a mass of fluids and shrapnel, flying every which-way while his warped mask clinked against the rooftop and fell into the nearby alley. He let out a laugh-scream as he died, freezing everyone in place and preventing them from doing anything to stop the monster. The Alternate Editor turned, and gave a sad smile, as the reasoning of the BZP members started to come to. Then he was gone. Chapter Three Black Six. Head Moderator of BZPower, and the secondary leader of BZ-Nui under Dimensioneer. And currently the number-one guy mad at the Kanohi Force. He was fuming at his desk, reports from several members of BZPower on his desk, some saying Aerixx killed himself, others saying Ghidora had torn his head off and eaten his eyelids, and one from Dane saying they all smelled like trash. It appears even violent murder right in front of him was not enough to curb his saltiness. Shadow meekly crept into his office, clutching his staff nervously, noticing the head mod was turning as red as Jakura. "Y-you know, it's a wonderful d-day for a walk around town, a-and I thought..." "Shadow!!" He cringed at the thunderous voice. "Two months ago Ghidora promised to meet me to discuss Aerixx's death, and why he hasn't respawned. Two months ago. And seventeen more deaths have occured!" He slammed his fist down on the table. "Why has he run of and refused to speak or contact any of the moderators, much less be present in the city?!" Shadow sucked up what courage he had. "Well sir, he's been investigating the glass isles. He said the recent deaths link back to them. But-" Black Six smiled. "Well now, I'll send my mod crew to retrieve him! Thank you for the assistance, Shadow. You may go." Shadow got up without another word and left the office. ----- Arzaki sat in the chute train and stared out the window. He was suddenly aware of a massive dent in the side of the train. Also the seventy people on-board panicking. And the fact that there was a chainsaw-thing stuck in the roof. "Huh... Must've been... Daydreaming. Yep. Totally daydreaming." He unsheathed his two swords; his favorite swords, Flamereaver Twins. The members on-board began rushing to the other side of the cabin as the chainsaw-thing began tearing the roof off. Arzaki waited until the roof began to lift off the train, and then... He jumped upwards, igniting his swords, only to land in the open maw of an insect... What? But this insect was huge! And covered in metal armour, dressed up like a samurai shogun, and very, very bulky... Before Arzaki could react, blue flames erupted from the insect's mouth, scorching Arzaki with an all-too familiar feeling... Needless to say, he didn't like it very much, and tried to hack away at the creature, only to find it was ridiculously resilient. "What on earth?! Yee-owch!!" He blasted fire straight off his side into the creature's mouth. It gave a cry of pain in a voice that sounded like a spawn of Karzahni being crushed to death. He was dropped, but was instantly rammed by the six golden legs and smashed into the side of a building, the large creature still on top of him. "Y.... You? Last I saw you, you only had two legs..." "Where is Ghidora?" It roared. "At last I will have my revenge!!!" ----- Shadow raced through the city on his Shadecycle, spying the skies in case Ghiddy might fall out of it. He was trying to get there before the staff; there being the glass isles. He was on the phone with Meyres. "Shadow, what in the name of all that is right in this world are the glass isles??" "Do I have to tell you again? The glass isles are a mysterious set of islands that are completely invisible, save for the grass and stuff growing on them. No-one knows how the glass isles came into existence, but one day Ghiddy picked up the Moldy Throne and-" "Shadow... What's the moldy throne?" He facepalmed. "You know, the one odd stone throne I picked up on that jungle expedition we did? It was covered in mold, and... Look who cares. It was in the courtyard, Ghiddy grabbed it, and WHAT IN-" The BZ-Pad shattered to pieces as he was knocked into an alleyway by a very tall figure. He tumbled across the ground, slamming back-first, upside-down, into a dumpster. The figure laughed maniacally, scraping his blade with his massive claws. "Now, I haven't had nearly as much fun as when I killed Pakas... But perhaps this will come close." He was an eyesore. Red blades bleeding colour into the eyes of whoever dared to look at him erupted from his shoulders. A tube which appeared to not only be made of his body, but also of steel, connected to his hand. and most importantly, two bladed claws held a shield made from a torso, probably from a Matoran who was unfortunate enough to cross the figure's path- and a massive blade, wicked and curved, which the character clearly loved to drum his claws on. "I'm sad Arzaki couldn't be here to tear apart instead," He gloated, eyeing the Matoran maliciously. "But you'll be a fun toy, all the same." ----- Ghidora was walking through the middle of the street carrying the Moldy Throne, when all of a sudden Shadow zipped past on the Shadecycle, too fast to notice who he was. He stood there partially dazed for a moment, until a portal opened directly behind him, and out stepped a silver figure in a silver cape with a silver shield and a silver sword. "...What. Are you Aerixx's grandpa or something?" He asked with some asperity, already upset he was being stalled. "Foolish Toa." The figure grunted, adjusting his Avohkii. "I am the light's light. You will not-" He was punched in the face and then roundhouse-kicked, sending him into the closest building. The figure roared, climbing out of the broken glass and stepping through the hole only to have Ghiddy slide towards him, trip him, then grab his legs and throw him again. "Give, up! You're so pathetic even Ben could beat you. What are you, a running gag?" "ENOUGH!! I was promised Shadow. Who are you?! You will not stand in the way of Lord Ghutan!" Chapter Four A long string of chrome ground into the sidewalk told of Lord Ghutan's fate. He had skidded along the ground at high speeds before colliding into Makuta Darkcron. The pair stood up, dizzied, before Ghutan summoned a portal. "It doesn't matter how much he pays us, I'm going back." Then, with a malicious glare to Shadow, as he tried to obscure the tarnished part of his armour, "But don't think it's over between us! whatsoever!" He stepped back into the portal, and after a short thought, Darkcron stepped in as well, smiling his goodbyes to the pair of unlikely heroes. "Who the heck was that?" Shadow said as he dusted himself off, Ghidora running over towards him. "He might as well have robbed a bank, seeing as how he came with Lord Ghutan and all." "That's Arzaki's nemesis." Ghidora coughed, spitting out some dust. "And seeing how he was with yours, I do believe we'll have a very big problem on our hands in a moment..." ----- Black Six stretched an unwelcome hand out to hoist Arzaki up. Genocide stood a distance off, scowling, before rushing at the head moderator. One swing of the bamhammer later, and the insectoid warlord was gone for good. "That wasn't a registered member." He growled, as he hoisted Arzaki up. "What have you been up to, Kanohi Force?" Arzaki rolled his eyes. "Have you seen the giant flying orb of death hovering around? The one that kills people and causes havoc?" "This is one of your problems again." Black Six growled even more, scowling at the fire Toa. "I warned you people before. Ghidora is a public menace and an absolutely inhumane person; he's demonstrated that before in his blatant hatred and disrespect for several of the long-time and respected members. And he's the head and figurehead of your group, so I know his stupidity is behind this. By Mata Nui, he'll get permabanned for sure this time! Well?" Arzaki was completely flabbergasted, but with his usual quick thinking he was prepared with a retort. "Yeah, I could say the same about you, cape-face. What, because you have prefix before your name you think you're better than anyone else? Being an Admin is a responsibility, not a dictatorship, and while Ghidora has stressed the line now and then he's never jumped over it like you do on a regular basis. Oh, and Ghidora doesn't attack members because he's doing them a service." The banhammer ignited again. "You say that one more-" "If Ghidora's disrespecting members of the community it's because they side with villainous slime like YOU!!" He jumped back and ignited his swords. The Admin's eyes lit like a brilliant blue flame. He had naysayers in the past, but none had challenged him beyond a temporary ban. If someone wanted to cut the strings, he would just have to pull harder. With a vicious roar Black Six rocketed into the sky and was clubbed by a massive sphere, carrying the moldy throne, on its way to the glass isles. ----- The Editor watched from the Kanohi Force Tower, Dallior at his side. As the least demanding Leedur, it was usually he who offered consult and support. "There's nothing you can do about it, Editor. Ghiddy's doing the best he-" But The Editor's head sagged, and a moment later he was on the floor. Dallior looked on in shock as the corpse of the editor disintegrated right in front of him. What was going on? Something slammed into his neck. He reeled for a moment before collapsing onto the ground, Loganto walking over to him and picking the thorn out of his skin. "Botanical contraptions really are the best. And I've been waiting to get revenge on Ghidora for a long time." ----- A-E arrived at the glass isles, throwing the unconscious form of Black Six into the waters below. Arzaki was quite a distance away, trying to figure out how to cross the large body of water. From the skies, BronzeJet watched eagerly, looking for a way to swoop down and provide justice. But justice would not come this day. As the glass isles rose out of the water as was their standard, The Alternate Editor raised the moldy throne high and dropped it into the depths. And as the glass isles revealed themselves, the World-Fighter clenched them into a mighty fist. Chapter Five A low, deep rumble echoed its way over BZ-Nui. The glass isles revealed themselves not as a set of disappearing land masses, but as a massive and rusted hand. Which would all be fine and well if it wasn't connected to an arm. Shadow looked around in shock to find the source of the noise, but was attracted to a shattering sound and a volley of high-pitched screams. Out of the tower flew Loganto, screaming for his life, with Dallior's arms wrapped around his miniature form. Too shocked to respond, he didn't even begin to run until the pair hit the ground. Dallior was nearly gone b the time he reached the pair. Loganto was insensible, having shattered his back from the fall and received a concussion. Shadow stood there, shaking horribly, when Loganto's eyes opened, and the shock of having been caught forced him to slam a thorn into his side. But upon realizing it was Shadow, he furiously tugged at his arms, unable to bring his shattered jaw to offer some kind of desperate plea. But as he began to disintegrate, an idea formed in Shadow's mind of what occurred, and he was slightly less compassionate towards the dying Matoran as he faded away in his arms. More screaming filled the skies. People began to run towards him. A bellowing, thunderous noise nearly burst his eardrums. And in the skies, Master Machination's massive red eyes stared death into every single living thing. ----- Jakura Nuva climbed up the side of the Kanohi Force Tower - why is a mystery to everybody - and regrouped with the remaining Leedurz. Arzaki had raced up to the building as fast as he could and was still in the elevator. Pohatu and Ghidora were already there, and Jakura arrived right when Arzaki did. Pohatu and Ghidora were mumbling to themselves, abruptly stopping when the other pair showed up, and the whole group exchanged silent and knowing glances towards each other. Then Dallior and Loganto plummeted from the Kanohi Force Tower. All the Leedurz on the roof rushed to one side to stare in amazement. They watched as Shadow raced over to save them and failed, but far before Loganto faded away Pohatu let out a horrible gasp and pointed to the horizon. "No, he got there before me!!" Ghidora clenched his teeth and slammed his fists into the top of the tower. "He's got him!" "Got him? Got who, Ghidora?" Jakura asked. "That idiotic fool has the one thing that could stop him," He hissed, the veins popping out of his head. "Master Machination - The World-Fighter!!!" Chapter Six The name was incredibly stupid, but the ominous presence of those eyes was not. From the outskirts of the small, highly fortified city something impossibly larger than the city removed the effective concealment it used. The eyes shined a brilliant red colour, and reading the emotion they carried was by no means a hard task. Alternate Editor was not going to spare any lives, that was for certain. "Quickly, we need-" But the subject of his attention, the BZPower military, came into view tailing a very different object - the B.Z.S. Daedalus. ''With its incredible naquadah/trinium/protodermis hull, capable of withstanding the direct heat of a star, and its physics-warping generator, the small military fleet stood no chance. The larger, incredibly reflective Daedalus zipped beyond their range in an instant, and began attacking the World-Fighter. "What in tarnation IS that?!" Shadow quipped. Unable to run up the wall, as it defied physics, he had bolted up the stairs. "You've got a lot on unanswered secrets, Ghid, and you should tell us more!" "A better thought." Jakura stated, waling forward slightly. "You've taken quite a higher position than us, Ghidora, and we have decided to remove you partially from the Leedur position. Just to keep you from being too high and mighty. We're supposed to work together, not rely on one-" Ghidora furiously grabbed the fire Toa by the head and chucked him from the tower. "Anybody else want to make a statement now!? Stop staring like IcarusBen and ''do something!! ''official or not, decided or no, I'm not going to waste time with the drawl you have to produce! Get down there and become useful!!!" Arzaki had gathered that much before Ghidora had finished, deciding discussing his position would come second to fighting for their lives. He had left mid-speech. Shadow was more than willing to contest Ghidora's argument, but that masterful scowl and the frantic matters of the situation overrode it. "Six, we're going to need the Vahki units." He said to his BZ-Pad as the other Leedurz left the building by other devices. "Have them prepped towards the south entrance. Six, are you there? Six?" ----- Jakura pulled himself out of the jewelry stand. Ghidora had no right to contest what the rest of them had decided upon, even if Dallior was majorly opposed to the concept. He had been flung into some sort of jewelry store, and tripped the burglar alarms. Grumbling, he staggered upright and tumbled out of the store. IcarusBen's ship was coming right for him. Jakura wasted no time being transfixed in shock. He jumped back into the jewelry store as the large combat vessel shredded up the street in front of him. As soon as it had landed, however, it took off again, preparing another attack on the World-Fighter. Feeling the danger was finally over for the time being, he turned around only to be knocked back by a Vahki slash to the face. It was the Vahki patrol of BZ-Nui, for some reason attacking him. One look at their somewhat staggered walk was all it took to tell him of what was going on. "Shadow, A-E has H.A.P.O.R.I. down," He said as he ran down the street and away from the hordes. Don't send any messages to staff. Get the Leedurz to the hangar; we have to attack that thing!" ----- Dane was a Vahki-Matoran, an entity designed to be both a Matoran and a Vahki, allowing him to shift in between the two. And he was dead. Having been controlled in the swarms of Vahki overridden by Alternate Editor, Meyres had wasted no time in cutting him and all the others around him in half. Pohatu was with him, summoning rocks from beneath the streets to destroy the Vahki around him. The majority of the Force, along with BZ-Nui, was dead and gone. Most of the Moderators and Admins were still fighting the hordes they once controlled. "Hey," Meyres said as he rested his mechanical arm; moving it around in combat ached his stump shoulder. "Isn't that guy smaller now?" Pohatu couldn't deny it. The massive thing, whatever it was, was slowly shrinking down. Of course, it was still big enough to trample the entire city, but the effects of the nearly demolished BZS fleet was keeping it at bay. IcarusBen and the ''Daedalus ''did little to nothing against the World-Fighter, for he constantly batted it away like an annoying insect, but something was causing him to lose mass. "I hope that thing dies soon." He grumbled. Chapter Seven Pohatu was destined to be correct, for the titan was losing mass faster than anyone could ever imagine. As the last few Vahki were being demolished, Irrie stopped to ponder why the titan was pathetically batting at ships instead of destroying them. ''Has he not been told, hon hon? ''Irrie pondered. The concept had not passed from his brain when Irrie was hoisted up by the neck. "Move on the city," Alternate Editor said, crushing the life out of Irrie's fragile frame. "Destroy it. And destroy the Daedalus." The deceased french freak was tossed aside like a pellet of paper, baguettes falling out of an elaborately designed french satchel. Up in the skies, the horrible form of the World-Fighter watched his master, and proceeded to carry out his bidding. ----- IcarusBen crawled forward in agony. The remains of the ''Daedalus scattered around him glowed with intense heat. Elsewhere, similar magma boulders were raining on the city. He had been used to the World-Fighter swatting at his ship and mildly denting it. But when the fiend had grabbed his ship, ripped it in half with absolute ease, and poured molten rock from his mouth into the vehicle, he had a general idea that he was outmatched. Now, as he crawled towards the familiar form of Ghidora discussing with the Leedurz, he could not so much as utter a noise in retort to the situation. At the last second, Shadow swiveled his head around and gasped, darting towards the figure. ... ... .uations permi.. ....ra, that wou... ..on... ...waking up... "M- my leg.." IcarusBen groaned on the hospital bed, ironically enough, the same one he had been present in before. Ghidora was reclined on a chair, his lithe, emaciated form large enough to make the chair look like one for a toddler. Shadow stood, his back against the wall, nodding his consent to Arzaki, who was once again polishing his mask with the same surgical sponge. Both Shadow and Ghidora carried the tell-tale signs of incredible stress and advanced age which follows authoritative position in a crisis, while Arzaki carried none, being used to calamity altogether. "You blasted.. Idiots... You knew that thing existed, Ghidora... Why didn't you-" "We all knew it existed." Shadow cut him off curtly. "You ''didn't, and for painfully obvious reasons. What I didn't know is that Ghidora reset the activation signature not as Black Six's BanHammer, but as the moldy throne." "Black Six cannot be trusted-" Ghidora retorted, but was cut off by a loud beep which IcarusBen was all too familiar with. "No... It can't end like this... I'll get you, you Ghidiot, I'll..." Shadow struggled to restrain a laugh at the reused pun, Ghidora not responding to it, but far more fixated on IcarusBen's death. Arzaki and he stood up to watch it better, while Shadow stood off the wall and walked closer. The last light began to fade from the single core which engulfed IcarusBen's head... ...Only for his leg to suddenly right itself and for him to snap back into existence abruptly. "The heck?!" the Av-Matoran shouted with a start, but the prone figure did not respond. A quick check on his helmet's stats told him the story, and then he lunged out of bed and at Ghidora. "You jerk!!! I'll tear-" He roared, but he never reached his target. Shadow zipped forward, caught him by the back of the head, and flung him onto the hospital bed. "You won't do anything," Shadow said, his eyes blazing, the sudden violent appearance of the usually cheery and apathetic Leedur enough to silence IcarusBen and make the other two Leedurz jump forward to restrain him. Arzaki quickly disarmed him while Ghidora pulled him back, patting his shoulder with incredible tenderness and softly speaking words of reassurance to keep him calm. "...Well, that's that." Shadow said, taking his staff back from Arzaki. "Pohatu's plan worked. Anyway, we need to be at our positions." "Arzaki, you go fight off the final Vahki squad." Arzaki nodded his consent to the idea, eyes blazing with the concept of shredded metal smoldering. "Ghidora and I will go to find Kovika and let him know." "Wait a tick." Ghidora said. "Jakura was with us before. Where is he now?" Shadow paused, then motioned for the trio to head into the lobby. IcarusBen remained on his bed, very well aware that if he was caught listening he would get another broken leg, and that any one of the trio was within the power to do so. Shadow shut the door and stood, hesitant, before responding. "He's taken the ''JakHammer ''to fight Master Machination." The eyes in the ebony giant seemed to drill into the back of his head. "No, wait... He needs me there to help take him down. If the World-Fighter segment-forms in the wrong-" "Stop." Shadow placed a hand on Ghidora's shoulder, the titan already shrinking as the crushing blow of the situation dawned upon him. "You can't be Jakura's bodyguard forever, or anyone's bodyguard. We're all Leedurz, we have the right to choose what we will do separate from anyone else. It's his time to shine, not your time to protect." The masterful figure of the president of the Kanohi Force had slid down to his knees. "No, I can't just... There must be... But I... How..." Arzaki decided the situation was far too awkward for him to remain. He slid out the emergency exit - slid out meaning he burnt a hole through it to avoid the alarm. The pair remained, lost in thought and dread, before Shadow finally walked towards the door and stopped to look back. "Kovika." He muttered, gesturing for the titan to follow. ----- Jakura activated the rocket sequences and shot out of the Kanohi Force hangar. The machine was built by Ghidora, for Jakura, as a present of some sort. Ghidora demonstrated the capabilities of the machine by dropping a building on it without so much as a scratch. And now, Jakura was going to test it for himself. The remains of the BZ-Nui air force remained in the water and around the coast. Master Machination, the cause of the carnage, had shrunk down to the size of twice Ghidora's height. Even now he was still shrinking, although far slower. And he was very much aware of the red machine soaring towards him. As the ''JakHammer landed, Jakura's voice boomed out from the bowels of the machine. "Cease your rampant assault or face me- which won't end well for you!" Master Machination stood silent. Then with the speed of a hurricane, his arm disconnected into segments being pulled and tossed around like they were on magnets. His core began to glow. "Oookay, I'll take that as a no then." Jakura said as the hand segment flew past and struck the vehicle with immense force. "Time to hit back." Chapter Eight Kovika. Head of... Basically nothing, he had assigned himself to take care of disaster victims, passing out rations and medical supplies to whoever needed it most. To his shock, the next people to request his appearance was Shadow and Ghidora. "Um... Sirs?" He tried to salute, but was carrying too much in order to. Shadow chucked with the lowest possible sound he could, while Ghidora cut straight to the point. "You're a Leedur now." He said. The serious expression on his face and the sidelong glance from Shadow told that this was no prank. Kovika dropped what was in his hands in surprise. "What? I... I'm a Leedur? But... Why?" "Sometimes, during the time of war, we don't have time or choice for allies." Ghidora said. He placed a hand on Kovika's shoulder. "You are because no one else can. Don't make us change our minds." He patted his shoulder and moved his aside so he could stalk in with the air of a vulture and inspect all the injured to see if Kovika was doing a good enough job. "Whoa.." Kovika thought out loud. "So, uh, Shadow, hehe, how the um, impending doom and such?" "Impending, as usual." He responded cheerfully. "Say, have you seen Black Six anywhere?" "He's on the roof," Kovika shrugged. "He's had a broken leg this whole time, and has been griping up there that he can't do anything." Hm, the effects must not have reached this far yer. ''"Well, I'll go take a peek at him and see what he's up to. Catch you later, amigo." Kovika resumed his duties with the assurance that he had meaning and purpose. Ghidora was gone. ----- Shadow climbed up the ladder leading up to the roof. ''Wonder why it hasn't taken effect everywhere yet. I don't... Wait a minute, patients on the second level. He heard rejoicing and several people rushing around. Obviously the effect was finally taking place. As he reached the top of the ladder, a burly armored fist grabbed him by the neck and hoisted him into the air. He met the steely blue eyes of Black Six. "Now to have a talk, Mr. Leedur." He snarled and ignited his BanHammer. Shadow gave him a blast of light in the face, which made him let go and stagger back noiselessly. By the time he ad recovered, Shadow was in a battle stance. The Matoran knew he had no chance against the head administrator. He could see him moving as fast as he did, he was taller, stronger, and his weapon would only need to hit him once. The admin was about to retort when a far stronger figure wrestled the hammer away from behind and flung it off the rooftop. Black Six whirled around and punched Pohatu in the stomach, taking just long enough for Shadow to rush in with a kick to the back of his knee and bring him to the ground. Pohatu jutted him into the air with stone from the roof and Shadow sent him spinning off the rooftop with a blast of light. With a roar he leapt back on, however, BanHammer in hand, and death in his eyes. "You traitors. We were good friends, Shadow, but you've gone too far. Get beneath my feet where you belong!" ----- Jakura flew back once more. The JakHammer was groaning under its own weight. Master Machination had put up an immense fight and barely flinched as Jakura put two tons of force into the creature. He was so busy fighting the monster he didn't even notice Dallior reappear in a side ally. Got to do something, quick... The World-Fighter barreled at him again, only for Jakura to meet his charge and grasp onto the core. The limb segments and the head segment began to flail painfully around the core, as he blistering blue light coming from the core at all times began to melt the massive hands and the brackets holding the hammer heads on as well. It felt for a moment the arms were going to fall off when something in Jakura's head told him to chuck it to the right. If Master Machination was plotting something with this, he'd make him pay for it. As soon as he flung it right he saw why. Dallior, standing in the alley, had spoken on his BZ-Pad to Jakura's headset. He was holding his fez as open as he could make it stretch. And the massive core, with all its limbs, flew into the fez despite being unable to fit, and were trapped in Dallior's pocket dimension. The pair of Leedurz stood transfixed in time and space, unable to comprehend the severity of what just occurred. "Well, I declare." Jakura shut down the JakHammer and wiped his brow. "Squeezed through that one like nearly everything else we do. But you're back?" "Dunno how." Dallior shrugged. "That traitor Ganto had-" "What! Ganto killed you?" "Oh, yes. Some kind of plant that disintegrated me. But I have a feeling he got his too." He smiled. And then, with all the peace and tranquility that harmonious friendship brings, they froze. Chapter Nine